Immigration Reform 2014: THE UPDATE for Monday June 16

Here to keep you up-to-date on the debate and legislative progress every Monday is THE UPDATE, a weekly blog series whose panel of experts will analyze how recent events affect the prospects for real reform. The panelists will offer an insider’s view of what’s happening right now on Capitol Hill, bolstered by their decades of experience with immigration reform and the legislative process. Media representatives who wish to speak with one of the panelists, please click here. If you would like to read previous editions of THE UPDATE, please click here. You can read the Spanish version at “Reforma migratoria de 2014: ‘LA ACTUALIZACIÓN’ para el lunes 16 de Junio.”

Given the most recent developments, are we getting any closer to immigration reform?

While many might see immigration reform as dead with Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s recent primary loss, the opposite may be true. This is an opportunity for the House to move forward now that Cantor—a powerful opponent of immigration reform—is out of leadership. Cantor’s defeat is one less hurdle Speaker Boehner has to overcome to take action before the August recess, and the faith community is anxiously waiting to see if Congress will act justly to make the correct moral decision. The message is clear, and faith leaders—including Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners—continue to vocally remind Speaker Boehner of his responsibilities as an elected member of Congress. Jim Wallis says:

So John Boehner, the faith community is now looking to you to lead and to do what you have said lawmakers are elected to do—to solve problems. This is a moral issue and a faith issue for us, and as a Catholic, it should be one for you too. Mr. Speaker, you will feel our presence all around you in these next critical weeks in which we must get reform done and show the country that our political leaders can still do something positive and bipartisan; that our leaders can still make the moral choice, not just the political one. We are praying for you and all of your colleagues in the Congress. May God give you courage and wisdom in these next few weeks.

THE UPDATE will appear every Monday until the dust settles on the legislative battle over comprehensive immigration reform. If you wish to raise your voice for fair reform, please visit ourAction Center. You can also learn more about the issues by reading two interviews with someone personally impacted by America’s broken immigration system, Jessica Colotl. Also, don’t forget that you can subscribe to this blog by adding your email address to the box at the top left of this page.